“Encore had a strong quarter as we recorded our third consecutive quarter of record global cash collections and reached an all-time high for estimated remaining collections,” said Ashish Masih, President and Chief Executive Officer. “Robust collections continue to be driven by our ongoing focus on operational innovation and the collections capacity that we have steadily added over the past several quarters in the U.S. In addition, global portfolio purchases totaled $249 million and included $123 million of deployments in the United States, a level that keeps us on track to deploy more capital in the U.S. in 2018 than in any other prior year. This solid performance was impacted by the charges incurred in the third quarter associated with the completion of the acquisition of Cabot and certain one-time tax items associated with one of our smaller international businesses, causing a higher than normal tax rate which further impacted our results.”

“The acquisition of Cabot strengthens our global business and establishes us as a clear leader in both the United States and in the United Kingdom, the world’s two most important markets for our industry. We are the global leader in debt purchasing when measured by estimated remaining collections. We expect Cabot’s debt purchasing and servicing platforms will strengthen our long-term leadership and growth in Europe through both its geographic and product diversity, as well as its broad servicing capabilities,” said Masih.

Key Financial Metrics for the Third Quarter of 2018:

Estimated remaining collections (ERC) increased 10% compared to the same period of the prior year, to a record $7.2 billion.

Portfolio purchases were $249 million, including $123 million in the U.S. and $115 million in Europe, compared to $292 million deployed overall in the same period a year ago.

Gross collections increased 13% to a record $499 million, compared to $443 million in the same period of the prior year.

Total revenues, adjusted by net allowances, increased 10% to $337 million, compared to $307 million in the third quarter of 2017.

Total operating expenses were $239 million, compared to $203 million in the same period of the prior year. Incremental operating expenses in the third quarter of 2018 included expenses related to the completion of the Cabot acquisition in the quarter, in addition to expenses associated with Wescot, acquired by Encore’s Cabot subsidiary during the fourth quarter of 2017.

Adjusted operating expenses, which represent the expenses related to our portfolio purchasing and recovery business, increased 6% to $180 million, compared to $170 million in the same period of the prior year.

Total interest expense increased to $65.1 million, compared to $52.8 million in the same period of the prior year, principally as a result of costs related to a Cabot refinancing, Encore’s purchase of the remaining interest in Cabot, higher average debt balances related to larger investments in receivables, and increases in the cost of short-term borrowing.

GAAP net income attributable to Encore was $20.7 million, or $0.69 per fully diluted share, as compared to $28.2 million, or $1.05 per fully diluted share in the same period a year ago.

Adjusted income attributable to Encore was $35.8 million, compared to $30.7 million in the third quarter of 2017. Adjusted income attributable to Encore per share (also referred to as Economic EPS) was $1.19, compared to $1.17 in the same period of the prior year.

As of September 30, 2018, after taking into account borrowing base and applicable debt covenants, available capacity under Encore’s U.S. revolving credit facility, was $178 million and availability under Cabot’s revolving credit facility was £77 million (approximately $100 million). These figures do not include cash on the balance sheet.
Conference Call and Webcast

Encore will host a conference call and slide presentation today, November 7, 2018, at 2:00 p.m. Pacific / 5:00 p.m. Eastern time, to present and discuss third quarter results.

Members of the public are invited to access the live webcast via the Internet by logging on at the Investor Relations page of Encore’s website at www.encorecapital.com. To access the live, listen-only telephone conference portion, please dial (855) 541-0982 or (704) 288-0606.

For those who cannot listen to the live broadcast, a telephonic replay will be available for seven days by dialing (800) 585-8367 or (404) 537-3406 and entering the conference number 9439619. A replay of the webcast will also be available shortly after the call on the Company’s website.

Non-GAAP Financial Measures

This news release includes certain financial measures that exclude the impact of certain items and therefore have not been calculated in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”). The Company has included adjusted income attributable to Encore and adjusted income attributable to Encore per share (also referred to as economic EPS when adjusted for certain shares associated with our convertible notes that will not be issued but are reflected in the fully diluted share count for accounting purposes) because management uses this measure to assess operating performance, in order to highlight trends in the Company’s business that may not otherwise be apparent when relying on financial measures calculated in accordance with GAAP. The Company has included information concerning adjusted operating expenses in order to facilitate a comparison of approximate cash costs to cash collections for the portfolio purchasing and recovery business in the periods presented. Adjusted income attributable to Encore, adjusted income attributable to Encore per share/economic EPS, and adjusted operating expenses have not been prepared in accordance with GAAP. These non-GAAP financial measures should not be considered as alternatives to, or more meaningful than, net income, net income per share, and total operating expenses as indicators of the Company’s operating performance. Further, these non-GAAP financial measures, as presented by the Company, may not be comparable to similarly titled measures reported by other companies. The Company has attached to this news release a reconciliation of these non-GAAP financial measures to their most directly comparable GAAP financial measures.

About Encore Capital Group, Inc.

Encore Capital Group is an international specialty finance company that provides debt recovery solutions for consumers across a broad range of assets. Through its subsidiaries around the globe, Encore purchases or services portfolios of consumer receivables from major banks, credit unions, and utility providers. Encore partners with individuals as they repay their debt obligations, helping them on the road to financial recovery and ultimately improving their economic well-being.
Headquartered in San Diego, Encore is a publicly traded NASDAQ Global Select company (ticker symbol: ECPG) and a component stock of the Russell 2000, the S&P Small Cap 600 and the Wilshire 4500. It has operations and investments in 17 countries, including its international subsidiaries Cabot Credit Management (Europe), Refinancia (Latin America), Baycorp (Australasia) and Encore Asset Reconstruction Company (India). More information about the company can be found at http://www.encorecapital.com. More information about the Company’s Cabot Credit Management subsidiary can be found at http://www.cabotcm.com. Information found on the company’s or its subsidiaries’ websites are not incorporated by reference.